Yale endures

It was the evening of Sept. 11, 2001. The horror of the morning was fresh. In a residential courtyard at Yale, there was music.

“I remember being in the Branford courtyard that night, and spontaneously a group of students — bagpipers — came through playing ‘Amazing Grace,’” Joseph Gordon, then deputy dean of Yale College, recalled in an oral history published by the Yale Daily News in 2011 to mark the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks. “You heard it coming from the next courtyard over, and it was just magical. It was really incredibly comforting.”

The sound cast a spell, channeling feeling, bolstering spirits, fostering a sense of community as listeners processed their individual response, Gordon recalls, noting that it was an early sign that the Yale community would pull together in the raw aftermath of a disorienting tragedy.

Yale Alumni Service Members Spotlight Eli Medal of Honor Recipients

By Henry Kwan • February 19, 2025

Introduced in 1861, the Medal of Honor is the highest military award of the United States Armed Forces. Out of some 40 million Americans who have served in uniform since the Civil War, only a total of just over 3,500 people have been awarded the Medal for conspicuous acts of gallantry and valor.

Yale Veterans Association Unveils Military History, Traditions Tour

January 30, 2025

In honor of all the Yalies who served in uniform throughout the generations, an initiative was recently launched to preserve and promote understanding of Yale’s contributions to the military history and national defense of the United States. Spearheaded by the Yale Veterans Association (YVA), an alumni organization dedicated to supporting veterans and the military community, and in collaboration with the Yale Visitor Center , the Yale Military History & Traditions Tour (virtual) consists of over 40 historical and contemporary images with in-depth descriptions covering the background and culture of military service at Yale since the Revolutionary War.